Possible Role of Bee Venom Therapy in Children with Cerebral Palsy

5 Abstract: Cerebral palsy (CP) is a non-progressive disorder of posture and movement caused by a defect or insult to the central nervous system. Impaired or altered growth patterns are very common in children with CP. This work aimed to evaluate the effect of bee venom therapy as an apitherapy in cerebral palsy. Forty children with CP were divided into two groups, Group I (20 cases), exposed to bee venom therapy and group II (20 cases) with no bee venom therapy. All cases were subjected to full clinical, neurological history and examination. Anthropometric measures were assessed, as well as biochemical analysis for Copper, zinc, alpha tochopherol,serum iron and levels of immunoglobulins at the start of the study then by the end of the study. Results revealed that cases of group I showed improvement in their posture, reflexes and reducing pain sensation as well as behavioral improvement as compared with cases of group II. Vertebral column deformity showed mild improvement in their angles of deviation, with better sitting position in cases of group I as compared with cases of group II. The nutritional intake shows that the energy intake zinc, copper, vit. E and iron were poor in both groups at the start of the study, but by the end of the study, cases of Group I showed mild improvement in their nutritional intake as well as levels of zinc, copper, alpha tochopherol, iron and immunoglobulins. In conclusion, Bee venom therapy can be considered as a part of apitherapy which utilizes bee venom in the treatment programs of children with CP.